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Add to the laundry list of “why Sheriff Tim Howard is awful” the fact that his department bought a $350,000 device that mimics a cell tower and allows police to surveil every cell phone call and text in range. Since this story broke, big 2nd Amendment “I won’t enforce the law” hero has dummied up. He won’t comment, and his department won’t explain why and how it’s used this device, or whether it’s obtained the needed warrants to do so.

Without a warrant, any evidence gather from, or as a result of, intercepted conversations is no good in court.

Erie County Legislator Pat Burke is calling for hearings on this, and hopefully everyone gets some answers.

14 Responses to “Tim Howard’s Spycraft”

No we “all” did not elect him. Many of us voted against him, but his chest thumping over the 2nd Amendment and the S.A.F.E.Act convinced so many gun rights loonies that they should overlook his incompetence and vote for him that he won.

This is exactly what the good people of Erie County get with the piss poor leadership of people like Steve Pigeon, Frank Max, Tim Kennedy, Camille Brandon and Kristy Mazurek in doing their trip-up-the-Democratic-candidate politics, and the resulting return of Tim Howard to office.

They have no care at all about the result of their politics.

This is yet again another good example of this failed approach with the Pigeon-Max-Kennedy-Brandon-Mazurek obsession with taking over the Democratic Party – at any and all costs, of course.

Gee, like Howard buying $350,000 in spying equipment. Another one, Chris Collins, and all the wreckage he wrought on residents, especially Buffalo residents and people who happen to be poor. Or even Stefan Mychajliw and his crookedness, but who cares, Mychajliw in all his glory feted at Frank Max’s annual spring brunch last week.

Will Kennedy, Brandon and Mazurek be letting voters know of their support of Howard when they run this year??? Or Frank Max??????

Maybe Tim Howard can send a spying drone around to keep tabs on Kennedy, Brandon, Mazurek and Max and let us know. After all, aren’t we paying for it?

I might be more upset that Howard thinks its acceptable and or desirable to be pictured with Joe Arpaio. That guy is one of the biggest pieces of shit in the country.

Good on Legislator Burke for calling hearings. My questions are 1) If the sheriff does obtain warrants, why not going directly to the mobile company’s to tap the lines? 2) Does the sheriff intercept unintended information, and if so, what does it do with it?

When the New York City cops began spying on Muslims in the five boroughs, they sent feelers out to good old Tim asking if the Erie County police would like snoop on local Muslim Somalis. As far as we know, Tim didn’t oblige, but he didn’t inform the community–not even the targeted Somalis–of this plan to commit a crime against them. In other words, he didn’t protect his employers from criminals.

the Sheriff’s Office does own and use technology that allows for the tracking of cellular devices. However, he said, the office does not possess equipment that allows for the interception of cell phone calls or text messages, nor any equipment that is capable of collecting personal data from targeted mobile phones.

“Utilization of this technology is only done so with appropriate judicial or legal authority, or in instances when life is immediately at stake,” Howard said in a statement.

… On Friday Howard said the cellular tracking devices have been an invaluable tool for his office, resulting in the location of five missing persons, as well as tracking the location of two suicidal individuals. The devices also helped foil 13 violent felonies while they were in progress and helped in the investigations of four murders, one abduction and a rape. …